People can listen to the Holy Spirit better than you think they can. At a recent consultation I did, I started out the way I usually do: meeting with the leaders to unpack their strengths, concerns, and vision. Then I led them into a time of questions and listening to...
Once I received a handwritten note of thanks from someone who was impacted by my ministry. My executive assistant (secretary back then) handed it to me and said, “Put this in your happy file.” That gave me the idea to start one. Ever since, I’ve kept...
Sometimes raising support makes you feel like a homeless person on a street corner asking passersby for money. I thought today I’d share the way I overcame that feeling when I raised support. (Full disclosure: I’m no longer on support; I’ve been...
How do you go about raising support? It’s not a one-time activity– it’s a process involving several steps. Here’s a proven approach: List Start by making a list of people. Consider those you’ve influenced or had a relationship with,...
While working full-time, Tony Bleything gathered a strong core of 70 people. He proved himself a capable missionary, gatherer and leader. At the point when he hit 70 people, he realized he could no longer function effectively in a bivocational capacity, but the church...
We need to start thinking about funding missional activity in new ways. I’ve already talked about how bivocational missions activity is going to be come more and more the future of the church, in part because the way we’ve traditionally funded church...
